Yaz in the fold for 2025; SF non-tenders two
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The Giants chose to retain their longest-tenured player ahead of the tender deadline Friday, agreeing to a one-year contract for 2025 with right fielder Mike Yastrzemski to avoid salary arbitration.
Yastrzemski’s deal is worth $9.25 million, a source told MLB.com senior national reporter Mark Feinsand. That slots the 34-year-old Yastrzemski into one of the Giants’ three starting outfield spots, alongside left fielder Heliot Ramos and center fielder Jung Hoo Lee.
Yastrzemski, who will be entering his final season before free agency, could still be a trade candidate if the Giants decide to make any additions to their outfield mix this winter. He could also make sense as a fourth outfielder due to his veteran leadership and consistent production.
The left-handed hitter batted .231 with a .739 OPS and 18 home runs in 2024 and was a Gold Glove finalist for the second time in his career.
San Francisco also reached agreement on a one-year deal with reliever Austin Warren, who was awarded an extra year of arbitration after qualifying for Super Two status this offseason. Warren, 28, missed most of the season while rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, but he returned to the Majors in late August and posted a 1.69 ERA over 10 2/3 innings in six relief appearances.
The Giants’ three other arbitration-eligible players -- first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. and right-handed relievers Camilo Doval and Tyler Rogers -- were tendered contracts. Their 2025 salaries have yet to be determined.
The deadline to exchange arbitration figures is Jan. 9. If a team and player can't agree on a salary, they exchange salary figures for a hearing in February, when a panel of arbiters will choose from the two salaries. Contract negotiations may continue throughout the process, until a ruling from the arbiters.
The Giants opted to cut two of their pre-arbitration players on Friday, non-tendering left-hander Ethan Small and right-hander Kai-Wei Teng, both of whom are now free agents. Small didn’t pitch in the Majors this year after suffering an oblique injury during Spring Training. Teng recorded a 9.82 ERA over four relief appearances for the Giants in 2024.
The moves left the Giants with 39 players on their 40-man roster.